Chapter 7: For You To See

Author's Notes: Here's a mild update, not too long but I think you all with be happy with it all the same. The title for the chapter comes from one of my favorite bands: Linkin Park from their song "Castle of Glass." Hope everyone had a good weekend!

When Felicity woke up that evening after a few hours rest, she felt better than she had since before she had the baby. Not only that but she got to hold her son again AND her doctor told her that her infection was finally clearing up and she could be released probably within two days. Also, her son wasn't far from being strong enough to be released too.

Police officers were a constant outside of her room and near Finley in the NICU, keeping watch over them. She wished Finley could be with her in her room, but understood that he needed the equipment in the NICU to get better. Detective Lance stopped by frequently to check on her as well – he assured her the cops watching over her family were personal friends of his so they could be trusted. Felicity still wasn't entirely sure that she could trust the Detective, so she was just as unsure about his friends.

The only one she trusted right now was the Arrow.

It was late, well past one in the morning. Except for the occasional nurse that came in to check on her, there wasn't much else going on. Her mother was asleep in the small room attached to hers meant for family members who stayed overnight. Felicity herself sat up awake unable to sleep – despite her nurse's insistence that she needed to rest. She was waiting for the Arrow to send a message back.

Not to mention the fact that her ex-husband's people could attack her again at any moment.

"Miss Smoak?"

She looked up to find Detective Lance in the doorway. "Come on in, Detective." He shuffled into the room, closing and locking the door behind him. "Not that I'm not happy to see you, but isn't it kind of late for visitors?"

"Yeah, well . . . this isn't really a social call." Lance immediately shut the lights off in the room other than the soft ones that lit the area around Felicity's bed. Little alarm bells went off in Felicity's head. Lance was by the window now, pulling up the shade and unlatching the locks.

"Detective, what the hell is going on?" Felicity tensed, her attempts to sit up straighter in the bed hindered by the pain in her gut.

"I sent your guards downstairs for a coffee break. Technically, I'm their replacement." He opened the window and made some kind of symbol with his hand. "He's your real visitor."

For a brief second, the thought that Lance was actually working with her ex-husband's people and was here to kill her crossed through her mind and she worked herself up to protect herself and somehow get her mom and son out of there . . .

A few moments later, a dark figure in green swung its way into the room through the window, rolling swiftly on the floor and coming to stand right next to her bed. He was holding a bow. Once she realized who it was, she relaxed.

It was Oliver – the Arrow.

He gave her a soft smile, his eyes covered in the black mask that always accompanied his outfit. He set something small on the table where her tablet sat – her tablet screen flashed and the phone next to her bed sparked.

"Great, now we can talk." Oliver pulled down his hood, leaving the mask on. She noticed that he wasn't using the voice modulator he had last time.

"So . . . you must have gotten my message then." Felicity observed. "You know, I attached a link that you could reply with."

"I'm not very good with technology." Oliver shrugged.

"And yet you have the means to short out the phone?" Felicity said.

"A friend made it for me." Oliver told her. She was mildly impressed. And, she kind of wanted to meet this friend.

"I'll be outside, give you two a chance to talk." Lance left the room, closing the door behind him.

Oliver kept his position, standing a few feet away from her bed. "How are you feeling?"

Felicity shrugged, letting out a deep breath. "Eh . . . it was a tough delivery." The Arrow was on high alert, his eyes scanning the room. He walked back and forth, to all the corners, pausing outside the room where her mother was asleep. "She sleeps like the dead – she won't wake up." She reassured him.

He nodded. "I've seen your chart – you very nearly didn't make it."

She wasn't surprised that he'd seen her chart – not that it made it any less disturbing. "That's what the doctors told me. Recovering from blood loss and major infection is a bitch."

"Wilson's men are still out there – but they haven't attacked again yet. They're waiting for the right moment. Has your husband's company contacted you at all since he died?"

She shook her head, wincing at the h-word. "None at all. Not even the press or the lawyers."

"They're either not interested in you at all or they have something else planned for you entirely." Oliver told her – which she'd figured out already. "Which is why I'm here and why you contacted me."

"Correct." She nodded.

"We need to get the three out you out of here as soon as possible, before Wilson decides to play his hand." The Arrow cleared his throat, all business.

"The doctors say that Finn and I should be ready to be discharged soon." Felicity said.

The Arrow shook his head. "We can't wait. I have a contact here in the hospital – a nurse. She's looked over your charts and checked on you both – she says you could leave sooner without any major complication. And she's helped me find supplies in case we should need it."

"But what if something happens when we leave? Without a nurse there—"

"I assume you've done your research on my team – Mr. Diggle has medical training from his tour in Afghanistan." Oliver told her. "He also has a young daughter of his own and a nephew – and plenty of experience with infants. My nurse contact will be on standby as well."

That relieved her a little, but not much.

"There isn't much of a choice here, Miss Smoak. Both Detective Lance and I don't trust that Wilson doesn't have a mole in the SCPD – police protection won't be enough." He told her.

"Yeah, I sort of already figured that which is why I decided to contact you." Felicity sighed. "So how does this work then?"

"For right now, you just need to trust in me and my team." He told her. "The less you know, the better. What about your mother? Does she know what's really going on?"

"No," Felicity shook her head. "If at all possible I'd like to keep her in the dark as long as I can. She tends to . . . overreact . . ."

"Understood. It may be more difficult, but not entirely impossible." He gripped the bow in his hand. "When the time comes, just go with it. Maybe keep your mother calm?" She nodded. He tapped something on his chest – a comm link maybe? "The extraction will be soon so you should get some rest. We'll be watching the area until then. You'll know it's happening if you hear the word 'verdant.'" He turned back toward the window.

"Mr. Arrow?" She called, decided to go with his other name in case someone was listening. He stopped, but didn't turn back. "I'm really sorry about what happened to your mom." She could hear him let out a breath before he turned around.

His face twitched, kind of like he was holding back tears. He looked up and their eyes locked. "How did you know it was me?"

"Your eyes." Felicity spoke softly. "I've seen you around the hospital the last couple of months. I've spent a lot of time here since I moved to the city – stress complications. There was one day you were kneeling outside a room – your mother's I would guess. You looked like your heart was in so much pain. I could see it in your eyes." He nodded. "When you saved me, I recognized that pain in your eyes – even through your mask."

He was silent for a moment, gripping his bow tight in his hand. Without a word, he held his bow up and jumped out of the window.

She fell asleep soon after, comforted by the knowledge that the Arrow and his team were watching over her and Detective Lance was right outside the door.

A few hours later the nurses brought her and her mother to the NICU to spend some time with Finn. While she held him, Finn's doctor came over them briefly to tell her that her son was growing nicely now and was ready to be discharged when she was.

Knowing that Finn was healthy enough to leave made Felicity feel a lot better since they would be secretly leaving the hospital before she was actually discharged.

Finn was quiet and content in her arms, staring up at her with his bright blue eyes. Her mother sat smiling at them in the chair in front of Felicity's.

"He's getting so big." Donna gently rubbed his cheek with her finger. "He was so tiny when I first saw him – scared me half to death."

"I hope his eyes stay blue, I love it." Felicity leaned down to press a kiss to his head. Not brown, like Ray's had been. Or green, like her father's.

"Just like my baby girl." Donna nodded.

"Look, Mom . . . I know we don't always get along . . . but thanks for being here with me." Felicity let out a breath.

"There isn't anywhere else that I'd be." Donna told her. "You and Finn are my family – and families stick together." Felicity nodded.

Soon they were approached by a nurse – one that Felicity hadn't seen before. "Hello Felicity." The nurse greeted her. "Do you think that I could talk to you for a moment?" Felicity tensed but didn't let it show. She had to trust that she'd be safe with the Arrow nearby. She turned to her mother who nodded.

"I'll be just over there." Donna said.

When they were alone, the nurse knelt down next to Felicity. "My name is Laurel – and I'm not a nurse."

"You work with the Arrow." Felicity spoke.

Laurel the not-nurse nodded. "I'm here to tell you "verdant" and it's time to go. Follow my lead."

to be continued . . .

End note: Holy doodle, here we go . . .